Che and Column Number 4
After leaving prison, Che, Fidel, and the rest of the revolutionary force headed for Cuba aboard the Granma. By this point, Che, privately, was a devout communist. However, Communism was still the bad word nobody wanted to say. Still, Che was becoming more comfortable discussing his personal views. While in Cuba, he began discussing some of his opinions amongst his group of men, titled Column No. 4, which can be seen to the left. Che's men would sometimes argue about whether or not their commander was, in fact, a "red." While some held that he was no communist, it eventually became clear that he did hold communist beliefs. Che would discuss Marxism and Communism with some of the men in Column No. 4. One in particular, Guile Pardo, recalled how Che compared Lenin, the communist hero of Russia, to Cuban nationalist heroes such as José Marti, Antonio Maceo, and Máximo Gómez. Che would help many of the young men in Column No. 4 learn to read and write. For those fortunate to have more education, he created study circles. From this, his men would learn Cuban history, politics, and Marxism. He even gave one revolutionary biography on Lenin. Che was using the revolution as a tool to teach his younger fighters about his views on political ideology.
image: (Anderson 284)
info: (Anderson 283-285)